Spotted this morning on neighborhood notes: a great lil' write-up by local blog A Fly on the Wall about Red E, a brand-spankin'-new coffee shop on Killingsworth. Read on:

When I first heard the rumor a few weeks ago about another (good sounding) coffee shop going in within a quarter mile of my house in North Portland, I thought no… no, way. It’s just too much… I mean, right? Coffeehouse 5, Albina Press, Blend, Ristretto, Fresh Pot, Blue Gardenia, The Waypost, AJ Java; these are all ridiculously close to each other (and me, yay). Then, yes, once again, I’m flabbergasted by Portland’s coffee appetite and the brown paper came off the windows of North Portland’s newest coffee shop member, Red E.

If you walk in and think you’re in an Albina Press, it’s because it’s cut from the same coffee cloth. Ex Albina Press employee Mindy Farley opened it and ex Albina Press employee Matt Higgins is the man behind one of their exquisite coffee offerings. Matt runs the boutique roasting company, Coava Coffee, not to mention works blocks away at neighboring coffee shop, Coffeehouse 5.

But don’t go looking for it there, ’cause it ain’t. When asked about this, um, detail, Mindy more or less shrugged and said it’s good for the block. “Plus, Matt doesn’t want to be owned by anyone.” True that. Matt says he’s working on getting it out there, but, ya know, sometimes somethings are hard. Regardless of where it is, you should try it cause it’s damn good. I’ve had it French pressed out of the airpot and it was the fruitiest stuff I’ve encountered.

And count Red E as the second dealer of Intelligentsia’s award winning beans, via the hands of an Albina Press has been (brand new Invasion Cafe has it too — thanks to A Fly on the Wall reader for the tip!). Fellow Albina Press runaway turned coffee shop owner, Billy Wilson also sells the stuff at his shop BARISTA. If you can’t see a trend then you’re not looking. Albina Press certainly has been doing something right for quite sometime. I was in San Diego last weekend, and when the conversation turned to Portland, my brother’s friend immediately brought it up. He had only been to Portland a handful of times, “What was that place called? It was the best coffee ever… Albine Pressed?”
Another trend I can’t help but mention is that Matt is the second fellow University of Oregon friend/alumnus turned roasting rock star (the other one being this guy). Cue corny mascot chant. Or maybe it’s just a small world. Thank god it’s filled with incredible coffee options.

Red E, 1006 N. Killingsworth. (503) 998-1387.